


Thinking 'Bout You

by malecvibes



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Bad Parent Robert Lightwood, Closeted Character, Coming Out, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Good Parent Maryse Lightwood, Homophobia, Internalized Homophobia, M/M, Slow Burn, Supportive Isabelle Lightwood, future maryse and luke
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-30
Updated: 2017-11-09
Packaged: 2018-12-08 18:56:22
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 13,554
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11652660
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/malecvibes/pseuds/malecvibes
Summary: All human high school AU!Alec Lightwood and his siblings have moved to a new school for Alecs senior year. Alec being nervous for his first day of school is an understatement but luckily he has his siblings Isabelle and Jace to get him through the day.What happened at Alecs last school and who is that glorious boy Alec made eye contact with as soon as he walked onto school grounds?





	1. Morning nerves

Alec woke with heavy eyes and turned to look at his alarm clock. “5:04 am” Alec groaned out loud.

He turned over in his bed trying to force himself to go back to sleep but it was hopeless. Alec's stomach was doing flips already; thinking about the first day at his new school. Alec was in his senior year and it was safe to say he was dreading the next eight months. Alec was an introvert, he liked to keep to himself. He did not have a lot of friends but that was okay because he always had his siblings who were always there for him. Isabelle his younger sister by two years was his biggest support system, she could read him like a book. Next, there was Jace, his adoptive brother. They were best friends; they have a bond like no other. Jace joined the Lightwood family when Alec was ten years old. Alec was weary at first when his parents informed him of this new boy joining their family, but it turned out to be the best decision the Lightwoods had ever made. Lastly, there was Max, Alec’s youngest brother. He was only 10 years old but Alec could swear he was wise beyond his years. While thinking about his siblings, Alec’s nerves subsided slightly about the day ahead of him. He knew that Jace and Isabelle would be by his side all day.

Alec threw his duvet off his chest leaving his bare skin feel the cold morning air that lingered in his bedroom. He slowly sat up in his bed, turning on a lamp that was on his bedside table. Alec sighed and looked around his room. It was a basic room with no real colour scheme. Alec kept all his furniture white and the accessories black. He liked it that way, everything was just very Alec. He stood up and found a grey hoodie laying on the floor and slipped it over his head. Alec knew no one would be awake in the house for another hour so he quietly tiptoed his way out of his room and into the kitchen.

The Lightwoods apartment was beautiful. It had high ceilings and a modern feel to it. Alec could see the first rays of sunshine seep through the house, leaving a beautiful gold glow throughout the apartment. As Alec reached the kitchen, he quickly made himself a coffee; black with no sugar and walked towards the balcony which came off the dining room. As he walked outside, the cold morning air made Alec shiver and cling onto his cup of coffee to keep himself warm. It was Fall so the mornings were always a bit chilly but once the sun was up, it was glorious. Alec walked over to the edge of the balcony and took in the view. The views of New York City never got old and Alec was grateful that he lived in such a spectacular area where he could see the sun rise sneak over the hundreds of city buildings around him. Alec watched as the sun peaked through the buildings, leaving the beautiful golden glow not only in his family’s apartment but all over the buildings of New York. Alec smiled, mornings like this always lifted his mood and helped him relax. Maybe starting at a new school won’t be so bad after all?

“Alec, why are you awake so early?” questioned Alec’s mother Maryse.

Alec quickly turned to face his mum; he was not expecting her to be awake so early. “Mother, good morning. I couldn’t sleep. You know the first day of school nerves and all” Alec mumbled quietly.

Maryse looked at her son, her face gentle and warm. She smiled as she slowly walked up to him. “You have no reason to be nervous, you will make so many new friends here and maybe even meet a nice girl.” Maryse moved her hand to Alec's face, her thumb brushing over his cheek bone to comfort him.

Alec knew his mother was just trying to make him feel better but that last comment brought back all the nerves he was feeling this morning. Alec looked to the ground and back to his mum. He took a deep breath and replied. “Yeah, maybe” Alec chuckled awkwardly.

Maryse held concern in her eyes, knowing Alec was hiding behind his feelings but she did not want to push the issue any further. “Well, I am going to get ready for work and head out. If I don’t see you again before I leave, I wish you and your siblings the best of luck for your first day of school.” Maryse smiled at Alec, still brushing her thumb on his cheek. “What happened at your last school won’t happen again here. I promise you, Alec.” Maryse’s voice was soft and comforting but her eyes were filled with worry and concern.

Alec wanted to believe his mother’s words but the screaming voice at the back of his head was telling him otherwise. Alec wanted to tell his mum all his concerns about today and how he wasn’t ready for the day ahead of him but instead, he gave her a sweet smile and replied: “Thanks, mum, I’ll tell you all about the day when you get home.”

Maryse dropped her hand to her side and began to walk away. Alec let out a breath he didn’t even know he was holding. “Get it together Lightwood!” Alec mumbled under his breath as he walked back inside towards his room.


	2. It's that time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More morning nerves for Alec and we explore a little further into what happened at Alecs last high school. The Lightwood siblings bond and have some great banter. We also get a glance at some beautiful man...

As Alec walked back into his room, the nervous feeling he had in his stomach intensified. Walking over to his wardrobe, Alec picked out his favourite dark green shirt and a black pair of jeans and chucked them on his bed.

 

Walking over to his ensuite bathroom, Alec turned his shower on full blast. As he waited for the shower to heat up he looked at himself in the mirror. Alec had deep hazel eyes with specks of green that would pop out depending on the clothes he chose to wear. His eyelashes were long which made Isabelle awfully jealous. His skin was pale due to the lack of sun light he got this summer. He raised his hands to his deep brown, almost black hair and messed it up more with his fingers. The mirror Alec had been staring into started to fog up making it clear the water was finally hot enough. Alec jumped into the shower and quickly washed over his body. The hot water over his skin relaxed his tense muscles. Leaning his forehead against the now warm shower wall, Alec sighed.   _This school won’t be like the last one_ he repeated over and over again in his head.

 

Stepping out of the shower, Alec quickly dried his body and wrapped the white towel around his hips and walked out to his bedroom.

 

“Alec! Finally, I swear I’ve been sitting here waiting for you for 20 minutes now” Isabelle whined.

 

“Izzy, w-what are you doing in here waiting for me anyway? Ever heard of a thing called privacy?” Alec blushed. He knew his sister was an open book and didn’t care about seeing her brother topless but Alec would much rather the privacy after showering.

 

“Oh please, look at you. You’re as red as a tomato!” Isabelle giggled.

 

Alec huffed and stormed towards where his sister was sitting on his bed and grabbed the clothes he picked out earlier and returned to the bathroom.

 

“No Alec, please don’t tell me you’re wearing _that_ shirt today! What about that lovely salmon coloured one I picked out for you? You still have it somewhere don’t you?” Alec could hear his sister looking through his wardrobe searching for a shirt Alec knew he _accidentally_ misplaced.

 

Alec walked out the bathroom dressed in his dark green shirt which was slightly wrinkled and black jeans. “Iz, come on what’s wrong with this shirt?” Alec questioned.

 

“Maybe the fact that there is a hole on the bottom right corner of it” Isabelle looked horrified.

 

“It adds character! This is my favourite shirt; it’s going to bring me good vibes today. You wouldn’t want me to be departed from the one thing bringing me good vibes today, would you Izzy?” Alec smirked. He knew his sister couldn’t argue with him on this topic today.

 

“That’s not fair, Alec! Guilt tripping me is plain cruel” Isabelle hissed.

 

“Guilt tripping? No… I’m simply stating a fact young sister of mine”

  
  
“I give up! You get to wear that _thing_ today but don’t think I won’t be trying to dress you tomorrow _Alexander Lightwood_ ” Isabelle replied with a huge grin on her face.

 

“Keep calling me Alexander and you’ll have no hope, Iz.” Alec joked. “Is mum still home?”

 

“No, she was in a rush this morning. She gave me a quick kiss on the cheek and practically ran out the house with her work bag. I think her and dad are fighting again” Isabelle looked towards the carpet floor of Alec’s bedroom, trying to avoid her brother’s hazel eyes.

 

“Great. I wonder what he’s done this time. As long as they keep it between them and don’t bring us into it again” Alec rolled his eyes.

 

Alec had a good relationship with his mother. She was always trying to do what’s best for her children. She worked hard to keep the family united although she worked long hours for the NYPD. Maryse wasn’t perfect but who is? His relationship with his father, Robert, on the other hand, was horrible. Robert was a traditional man with strong morals and beliefs. He was the man of the house which meant it was his way or the highway. Alec learnt quickly at a young age not to challenge his father. Robert was a very high up lawyer and was respected by few and feared by many. Robert has always expected Alec to follow in his footsteps but Alec couldn’t think of anything worse.

 

“I’m guessing our father is still home then?” Alec mumbled.

  
  
“You guess right. He’s in the kitchen slamming every cupboard door he opens.” Isabelle sighed. “I don’t know what has him so angry this morning but whatever it is, 6:30 am is too early to be _this_ angry at the world”.  

  
  
“When isn’t he angry at the world though? It’s like he has a permanent carrot up his ass”

  
  
Isabelle laughed loudly. “I couldn’t say it better myself big brother. Come on, let’s see if Goldilocks is awake yet”

  
  
“If Jace finds out you call him Goldilocks behind his back, you’ll never hear the end of it. You know the fairy-tale of Goldilocks and the Three Bears gave him nightmares as a kid” He chuckled.

  
  
“First of all, Jace was 14 when he had that nightmare. I wouldn’t say he was a kid. Max is a kid. Jace is just…unique. Secondly, who has a nightmare about the three bears? Goldilocks was the monster in the story but no, of course, he fears the nice cuddly bears!”

 

Alec and Isabelle made their way out of Alec's room and down the hallway to Jace’s bedroom. Slowly they opened the door and saw the sleeping figure of their adoptive brother. “I knew he would still be asleep” Isabelle mumbled under her breath. “Lucky we got here to wake him before dad did. That’s not a wakeup call I’d wish upon anyone, not even my worst enemy” Isabelle shivered.

 

Before Alec could nicely wake Jace from his slumber, Isabelle jumped on his bed. “Good morning sleeping beauty!” Isabelle sang.

  
  
Jace groaned and tried to cover his face with his pillows but the sound of Isabelle wouldn’t go away. “Izzy, really?! I’m thankful for you waking me up but really?” Jace slowly sat up and smirked. “Jumping on my bed, scaring me half to death was the way to do it? What about a nice breakfast in bed, two eggs, sunny side up and a coffee next time?” His smirk quickly disappeared as a pillow was thrown at his head roughly by his sister. “Okay… I’ll take that as a no then” Jace rolled his eyes.

 

“Come on, you need to get ready Jace! It’s our first day at our new school, aren’t you excited?” Isabelle squealed.

  
  
“I don’t think excited is quite the right word for it, Iz. I’m not looking forward to the boring six hour days but… I am looking forward to meeting my new female classmates” Jace smirked.

  
  
“Really man, you are already thinking about finding girls to date? We haven’t even left the house yet” Alec rolled his eyes for the fifth time this morning.

  
  
“Hey! Don’t judge me. I’m just thinking of the positives. You never know Alec, maybe you’ll meet a nice girl too. We can be each other’s, wingman!”

  
  
Alecs stomach dropped. _Maybe you’ll meet a nice girl too._ It was like his short conversation with his mother earlier this morning. Isabelle looked at her brother with a sad smile, knowing Alec would rather do anything but meet a nice _girl_. Alec quickly cleared his throat trying to distract Jace from the awkward silence that filled the room. “Yeah look, that’s not going to happen” Alec mumbled.

  
  
“Come on Alec, you can’t let what happened at our last school drag you down at our new school. You’re an attractive guy, the girls will be falling at your feet! I mean, the ones that haven’t fallen at mine first” Jace winked.

 

_If only Jace knew,_ Alec thought. At their old school on the Upper West Side, Alec and his siblings were the most popular students around. Alec was the poster child. Perfect grades, perfect family, perfect…girlfriend. Alec still shivers at the thought. Everything in Alecs life was laid out for him, he knew the path his father wanted him to take, the path he knew he would have to take but his heart and mind kept getting in the way making his days exceedingly difficult.

 

“Earth to Alec? You still there, man?” Jace was out of bed now and bumped into Alec’s shoulder lightly.

  
  
“Yeah sorry, I just zoned out for a moment there” Alec laughed awkwardly.

 

“All good bro. I know you are nervous about today; I can practically feel the nerves radiating off your body” Jace joked lightly. “But in all seriousness, you know Izzy and I will be there for you, always. This is going to be your year, Alec.”

  
  
Alec looked at Jace, his eyes were welcoming and warm. “Thanks Jace, you know me… I’m an over thinker. But don’t worry about me for now, go get ready! You’ll be the reason we are late and I don’t need the added stress” He laughed.

 

Isabelle watched as Jace left his room and wandered into the bathroom. “Alec… you are going to have to tell him one day.”

  
  
“Tell him what Izzy? I don’t know what you’re talking about”

  
  
Isabelle slowly walked up to Alec and whispered. “Oh I don’t know… maybe the fact that you enjoy the company of other men and not women?

 

Alecs face dropped. “Isabelle! Here, really? Can we not talk about _this_ in Jace’s room and while dad is still home?”

  
  
“Fine, but we are talking about _this_ later on tonight. You can’t keep hiding who you are Alec, it’s not healthy. No one will judge you.”

  
  
“No one will judge me? That’s funny Iz. Tell that to all those assholes at our last school or did you forget that they almost ruined my life?” Alec’s eyes were quickly filling with tears. “You have no idea how much I wanted to come out last year, but after everything that happened… I just can’t bear the thought of it anymore. I just need to get through this year without any drama.”

  
  
Isabelle mirrored her brothers facial expression. They both looked broken. Eyes filled with tears ready to break through. “I’m so sorry, Alec. I didn’t mean it like that, I know those people were horrible to you. I just mean, your family, they will love you no matter who you love”.

  
  
“I know you accept me Izzy and I’m so grateful that I have you but what will mum think? And Jace? Fuck, imagine what our father would say. I would be disowned.” Alec said holding back his tears.

  
  
“Mum loves you no matter what Alec. You have to realise that. The same with Jace. He thinks he’s helping you by attempting to hook you up with girls but he’s only doing it because you aren’t letting him in; letting him know who you really are. About dad…”

  
  
“About dad, what?” a strong voice echoed behind Isabelle.

  
  
Alec quickly looked up, blinking away the tears that threatened to fall down his cheek. “Father”. Alec said in a monotone voice as he stood up straighter. “We were just saying how-“

  
  
“We were just talking about the loud noises we heard from the kitchen this morning” Isabelle laughed. “I was explaining to Alec that you seemed a bit frustrated this morning and the cupboard doors were on your hit list”.

  
  
Robert looked between Alec and Isabelle and sighed. “Yes, I do apologise for the noise this morning. Something…came up between your mother and I and I lost my temper a bit”.

  
  
Isabelle walked up to her dad and kissed him lightly on the cheek. “Well I hope things are okay now, dad. You know we hate it when you and mum fight. Anyway, it’s 7 am you better be off to work before you’re late and that temper flares up again!”

  
  
Robert looked at his watch and cursed. “Thank you, Isabelle. If it wasn’t for the argument earlier this morning, I wouldn’t be running late” Roberts cheeks began to flush red. “I’m glad your _mother_ got to work on time”. He glanced between Alec and Isabelle, “make a good impression at school today, children. We have a name to uphold and I expect you both and Jace to respect that” Robert gave them both one more look over and rushed out the door.

 

Alec sighed loudly. “Well that was a close call.”

  
  
“What was a close call?” Jace questioned as he turned to walked into his bedroom. “…and why are you two still in my room. Alec your room is much bigger than mine, if you really want to spend your time in here we can totally swap! I’d be cool with that man.”

  
  
Isabelle giggled and Alec glared at her. “We were just talking shit about dad and he walked in and overheard. A bit awkward but obviously I saved the day like I always do” Isabelle smirked as she flipped her long dark hair over her shoulder.

 

“And I don’t know why we are still in your room, Jace. I told Izzy I didn’t want to talk in here but you know how our sister is. Oh yeah and Jace, no we are not swapping rooms.”

  
  
“Boo!” Jace complained as he threw a dirty shirt he found on the ground at Alec. “You suck.” Jace crossed his arms and pouted. Whenever Jace did this, Alec couldn’t help but laugh. He looked like a toddler having a tantrum.

  
  
Alec turned to leave Jaces room and wake up the youngest Lightwood. Alec always felt bad for Max, he was too mature for his age. Due to their parents working all the time, Max had to grow up fast. Alec, Isabelle and Jace want to keep Max as a kid for as long as they can so they always try to take him out on fun days out and away from the house when business meetings are on. Alec opened Max’s door and saw the young boy already up and dressed for school. “Good morning Max, you’re certainly prepared bright and early” Alec smiled as his little brother ran up to him and hugged him tightly.

  
  
“Alec!” Max squealed.

  
  
Alec felt tears invade his eyes again but this time from being happy. Max made the world feel like a brighter and happier place. Alec loved being an older brother, looking after his younger siblings. Seeing how much Max adored him made Alecs worries for the day slip away at least for a minute or two.

 

“Come on, lets get you some breakfast and get you to school” Alec smiled.

 

Alec walked Max to the kitchen and quickly made him some breakfast. Walking over to the balcony Alecs phone chimed and a text message appeared on his screen.

  
[From: Driver David]  
_\- Good morning, Alec. The car is waiting for you and your sibling’s downstairs._

_  
_ [To: Driver David]  
_\- Thank you, David. We will be down ASAP._

Alec dropped his head into his hands. The time had finally come. The time where he has to meet a bunch of new people and live a lie he doesn’t want to lie. The fear of the past haunting him every second. Alec shook his head. _Just get through the day_ Alec repeated in his mind.

  
  
“Isabelle, Max, Jace are you all ready? David is waiting for us downstairs. Let’s not keep the poor man waiting any longer. I told him we would be down as soon as possible.” Alec yelled throughout the apartment.

  
  
Isabelle and Max were standing by the door patiently waiting to go downstairs. The minutes pasted and still no sign of Jace.

 

 “Jace, hurry up! How many times do you need to check yourself out in the mirror? The car has been waiting for us for ten minutes now!” Alec yelled from the kitchen.

 

Jace came running out of his room with a huge grin on his face. “Let’s go siblings! Bring on the next eight months at one of New York’s best High schools – Institute High!”

  
  
“What a shit name for a school. It sounds like a prison or a mental institution.” Alec groaned.

 

“Brighten up big brother, it’s going to be amazing. The girls from our old school were _so_ jealous when I told them we were going here. Apparently it’s full of hotties” Isabelle eyes twinkled as she grinned at Alec.

  
  
“Whatever. Let’s just get down to the car, drop Max off and get this day over with”

  
  
The Lightwood siblings packed themselves into the car and chatted the whole journey. Well, everyone but Alec chatted. He sat silently listening to his own thoughts for the entire journey, only speaking up to say goodbye to Max.

  
  
“We are here” announced David.

  
  
Alec felt his stomach hit the floor. It was really that time again. He felt a warm hand over his and turned to see Isabelle smiling softy at him. Her eyes softly saying _Alec, it’s going to be okay. We are here._ Alec slowly got out the car and looked around. The school was beautiful, there was no doubting that. The building was surrounded by beautiful plants and trees which was nice to see in this concrete city. Alec and his siblings began to walk towards the building when Alec made eye contact with the most beautiful person he has ever laid eyes on. His hair was black with red streaks through the front. Alec noticed he was wearing make-up. He had never seen another man look so beautiful with eyeliner before. The clothes he wore made him stand out but not in an obnoxious way, more in a hypnotising way.  He wore a red top that flowed beautifully around his chest and arms. There was specks of gold detailing on his shirt that glowed if the sun hit him on the right angel. Alec was in complete awe of this glorious man he had only just laid eyes on.

  
  
“Alec, did you hear me?” Jace was waving his hands in front of Alec’s face.

  
  
“O-oh yeah, sorry Jace. I keep zoning out this morning. What did you say?” Alec’s face was blushed with a beautiful shade of pink.

  
  
“I was saying how we need to go over to the main office to get our timetables… but you didn’t hear a word I was saying. You were too busy looking over there” Jace said as he pointed towards the gorgeous man Alec was staring at. “What’s so interesting about that group of people? Wait, did you also see the hot red-head that walked past them?”

  
  
“I-I uh, what?” Alec was lost for words. He didn’t know what was happening to him but his brain and his mouth were not working together at the current moment.

  
  
“Man, you must be nervous about today. You can’t even form sentences anymore” Jace laughed and hit Alec on the back in a friendly gesture. “But that red-head… I call dibs! Maybe we can find you a hot blonde” Jace smirked as he started to walk away towards the front office.

  
  
“I think I’m more into people with black hair” Alec mumbled under his breath to himself.   
  
  


 

  


 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is my first fanfiction I have written so I would love your feedback! If you have any requests on how you would like the story to go, I am more than open to your ideas. I'm having so much fun writing this already and it's just getting started! Thank you to everyone who has read the first chapter and left kudos! Very appreciated. Keep leaving comments!


	3. First Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We explore a little deeper into Alec's first day at Insitute High. Alec meets a couple of new people. One, in particular, has him very interested...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Quick note: Sorry this took so long to be updated and it's not that long but I hope you all enjoy! I'm keen to hear your thoughts. :)

“Welcome to Institute High! My name is Jocelyn but you can call me Ms. Fairchild, and I am the woman in charge around here” Jocelyn smiled at Alec and Jace. Jocelyn had long amber hair that flowed beautifully down to her waist. She stood tall and appeared very confident within herself.

“Here are your timetables, I hope you are happy with them. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to have you both in the same classes…” Jocelyn continued.

Alec’s face dropped. _Am I not in all the same classes as Jace? No, this isn’t okay. I need him, I suck at making friends._ Alec thought.

“but, I have made sure to assign you to a student each that I feel will make you feel comfortable in your classes during your first days at your new school. Think of it as coming here with some new friends already!” Jocelyn explained excitedly.

Jace chuckled under his breath and glanced at Alec who was rolling his eyes. “Thanks, Miss”.

“If you need anything, just come here to my office and I’m more than happy to help. Now, off to class boys!”

Both boys grabbed their timetables and quickly walked out the door. “So, I’ve got Geography first up how about you?” Asked Jace as he looked at his timetable.

“Uh, English. Great, first class and I already have no one. Today just keeps getting better” Sighed Alec.

“It’ll be okay, man. You heard Ms. F, we are going to have our own buddy to take care of us” Jace laughed as he continued “hopefully she hooked us up with some pretty girls as study partners” Jace winked.

“You’re an idiot”

“Just thinking of the positives, Alec! Come on, we have to go. Can’t be late” Jace smirked as he ran off to find his first class of the day.

Alec stood awkwardly in the hallway as he watched Jace run to his class. Other students were passing him, looking him up and down. _Oh God, do they know?_ Alec felt like the walls were closing in on him. Suddenly the temperature in the hallway started to increase and breathing wasn’t as easy as it was five seconds ago. Smalls beads of sweat were starting to form on Alec's forehead. _Breathe Alec. Come on, remember what Izzy told you. Count. One… Two…_

“Are you okay?” A small voice startled Alec out of his panic.

He quickly turned around to see the ‘hot red-head’ Jace was already obsessed with, staring at him with big eyes full of concern. “My name is Clary; you must be new here. I haven’t seen you around before. Are you Jace by any chance? I’m supposed to be looking out for him today” She smiled sweetly.

 _Oh great, Jace is paired with his red-head fantasy girl. I am never going to hear the end of this._ Alec cleared his throat, “Uh, n-no. Jace is my brother”.

“Oh, sorry! So you must be Alec, right? Are you okay, you seemed pretty lost standing here”

“Yeah, I’m Alec and I’m fine, don’t worry about it. Just uh, overwhelmed I guess” Alec could feel his cheeks burning up. He couldn’t believe people have already seen him have a nervous breakdown at a school he hasn’t even been at an hour.

Clary looked up at Alec softly. “Hey…” She put her hand on his shoulder lightly “don’t worry about it. Starting a new school is intimidating at first but trust me, you’ll love it here. Everyone is really supportive. If you need help around here, just let me know, okay?”

“Okay,” Alec whispered.

“I better get to class, are you okay finding your way to your first class?”

“Yeah, I am. T-thanks Clary.”

Clary gave Alec one last glance before turning away and heading to her Geography class. After taking one last deep breath, Alec found his feet and headed to English. Walking into the class he could see students smiling and laughing with each other, casually sitting on their desks without a care in the world. Slowly Alec walked over to the teachers' desk where he saw a woman sitting.

“Uh, hi. I’m Alec Lightwood, I’m new here. This is English with Mrs. Herondale right?”

The teacher slowly looked up at Alec and smiled. “You would be correct Mr. Lightwood. Why don’t you take a seat over there? We are just about to get started.” She pointed to where a group of students was standing and talking. Alec started to walk over when he noticed the boy from this morning. The red streaks in his hair stood out even more under the harsh lighting in the classroom. Alec felt his chest close up. _What if I have to sit next to him? What if he is the ‘buddy’ Miss Fairchild set me up with?_ “Are you okay, Alec?” Mrs. Herondale called from behind Alec. The group of students including the beautiful boy with the red streaks in his hair all stopped their conversation and stared at Alec which brought him out of his daydream.

Alec's eyes widened as he noticed all the eyes on him. “Yeah, sorry just got lost in thought. I’m sitting over here, right? Alec quickly spluttered out.

Mrs. Herondale smiled sweetly. “Yes”.

The group of students stopped staring at Alec and sat down at their seats. Alec felt a sigh of relief when he saw they have stopped staring at him. As Alec reached his seat he noticed the boy from this morning was still staring at him with curiosity in his eyes. Alec could feel his cheeks heat up as he made eye contact with him. The boy gave Alec a quick smile before turning away. How am I going to survive this class? Alec thought to himself.

\---------------------  
“Before class ends, I’d like to tell you about your first assignment!” smiled Mrs. Herondale. Everyone in the class sighed. “You’ll be in groups of two and you will work on the assignment for the next few weeks. You have to compare the book The Great Gatsby with the movie. I want you to really explore and go in-depth with your analysis!” Alec held his breath, _group assignment? I don’t know anyone, how am I going to choose a partner unless… oh no, please don’t tell me she has already pi-_ Alec’s thoughts were interrupted. “I’ve already chosen your partner and I’ve written in down on this list which I’ll leave out the front for everyone to check as they leave” Shit, Alec sighed as he put his face in the palm of his hands.

Class ended and everyone quickly hurried to the front of the class to see who their partner was. Alec stayed quietly in his seat dreading to find out who he was with. He saw other students cheer when they found out they were with their friends. The boy with the red streaks in his hair looked around the classroom a few times before focusing his gaze onto Alec. Alec looked up and froze when he saw the boy staring. _No, no, no!_ The boy walked over to him, “Alec Lightwood?” he asked. Alec felt his heart beat faster and his palms begin to sweat.

“Y-yeah. That’s me” Alec said shyly, avoiding the boy's eye contact.

The boy smiled sweetly. “I’m Magnus Bane, it seems we have been partnered for the assignment”. Alec looked up at the boy, _Finally a name to that beautiful face. Magnus…_  
Alec’s thoughts were once again interrupted by a voice talking to him. “You still with me?” Magnus laughed. Alec went bright red and quickly nodded his head. _Oh dear God, I must have been staring. He must think I’m some freak!_ “Good. We should exchange numbers so we can easily contact each other about the assignment and where we can meet up to study” Magnus said as he handed Alec his phone. Alec grabbed Magnus’ phone and accidentally touched his fingers while grabbing the phone. “S-s-sorry” Alec whispered shyly, his cheeks burning red. Magnus chuckled as he saw how flustered Alec was. “I’ll text you so you have my number, okay?” Alec nodded. Magnus smiled and began to turn away.

“Magnus, wait!” Alec quickly yelled.

Magnus turned around and smiled. “What can I do for you, Alec?”

“This might sound like a weird question but uh, are you the person that Ms. Fairchild set me up with? You know like my buddy?” Alec cringed after saying the word buddy. He sounded ridiculous.

The sides of Magnus’ mouth turned upwards into a small smirk. “Uh, no sorry. I know who is though. See the boy over there with the glasses? That’s Simon. He’s been too nervous to actually say hello to you. Pretty shit buddy if you ask me” Magnus laughed. Alec looked at Simon. Great. Alec rolled his eyes. “Oh. Thanks, Magnus.” Magnus smiled at Alec, “I’ll tell him to get his ass over here and show you around the school. But hey, Alec? Don’t worry, I’ll still be your…buddy” Magnus winked as he walked away.

Alec’s eyes widened in shock. _Did Magnus just flirt with me? Why would he do that? D-does he_ know _?_ Alec could feel his cheeks burning up for the tenth time in the last hour. Alec watched Magnus walk away, he was so confident in the way he held himself. It was hypnotizing.

“Hey, Sheldon! Get your ass over here and show Alec around the school. Ms. Fairchild would be so disappointed to know you’re a shitty buddy to him” Magnus yelled across the class as he chuckled.

“Magnus! For the hundredth time, it’s Simon. I swear you know this!” Simon yelled back while also laughing.

Magnus smirked. “Hm? That’s exactly what I said, Simeon?” Magnus walked over the door before turning around to glance at Alec. “I’ll see you around, Alexander!”


	4. Art Class

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two chapters in 24 hours, nice one! I hope you enjoy this chapter. Please let me know your thoughts! Any prompts, feedback etc. is welcome! I'm keen to continue this story so I hope everyone is enjoying it.

Once Magnus had finally left the classroom Alec felt like he could finally breathe again. He slowly stood up from his seat and walked towards the door. “Alec! Alec, wait up” called an unfamiliar voice. Alec paused and turned around to see Simon running over to him from the other side of the classroom. “Sorry I didn’t get to sit with you during class today, I saw you and heard your name when you walked in but dude, you are kind of intimidating” Simon laughed. Alec squinted his eyes at him and tilted his head. “Intimidating but not in a bad way! I swear, y-you look like you’d be a very friendly guy, not scary at all. I mean… the dark brooding look you have is kind of daunting but…” Simon stopped mid-sentence as he saw Alec look more bored as the conversation continued. “Uh- sorry, I have a bad habit of rambling… as I think you can already tell” Simon coughed awkwardly. “-but anyway! I’m Simon, Ms. F wanted me to show you around the school and help you meet some new people. I’m pretty sure our timetables are the same”  
  
“Great.” Alec rolled his eyes and turned away, walking back into the hallway. Unfortunately, Alec could hear Simon following behind him.  
  
Simon quickly caught up to Alec. “So… we have art next. I can show you where the cafeteria is on the way”

Simon and Alec slowly made their way to their next class. Alec didn’t say much, he just listened to Simon ramble on about Star Wars and his best friend Clary. He quickly showed Alec where the essentials were like; cafeteria, bathrooms, gym, good places to hide and cry… you know? The essentials.

Walking into the art room, Alec felt calm. He always liked art. He wasn’t necessarily that talented at it but it was something he enjoyed in his down time every now and then. Simon grabbed Alec by the arm and took him to a table he always sits at with his friends. Alec couldn’t say he was excited to sit with a bunch of random people but he was thankful Simon was keeping his word to Mrs. Fairchild and was keeping him company even _if_ his company pushed Alec’s last nerve.

Alec was fiddling with his pencil and staring at the clock, counting down the hours until he could go home. He could hear Simon talking to him but he decided to zone him out and nod occasionally to look like he was paying attention. A hand suddenly touched his shoulder. “Alec, hey!” Alec turned suddenly to see Clary staring at him with a huge smile. Alec smiled back politely and was about to say hi when Simon interrupted, “Wait, you know Clary already? Why didn’t you say, man?”  
  
Alec slowly turned to Simon, _Your best friend saw me have an emotional breakdown in the middle of the hallway, sorry for not mentioning it!_

“Oh, I don’t really know her that well. We met in the hallway, she uh- helped me find the class. Didn’t think of mentioning it.”  
  
Clary laughed sweetly, “I thought he was the guy I was supposed to be looking out for today- Jace, but it turns out that it was just his brother. I’ve got to say, Alec, you and Jace look nothing alike.”  
  
“Jace is adopted, we took him in as a stray when he was ten years old” Alec laughed, he loved talking about his siblings. “So, how was Jace this morning? Settling into his class well?”  
  
Clary blushed. “Jace is… he is very sweet and he did fine in class today” Clary giggled while pushing a strand of hair behind her ear. “He said we should all sit together at lunch today as one big group.”  
  
Simon glared at Clary. “He’s sweet? Okay Clary, you barely know the guy. He could be the biggest dickhead around, especially if his name is Jace” Simon saw Alec looking at him with a questioning look. “I mean, no offense Alec, I’m sure your brother is great and all… I just don’t want some guy hurting my best friend, I mean look at her, he’s already got her blushing” Simon mumbled as he rolled his eyes.  
  
“Shut up, Lewis!” Clary gasped pretending to be offended as she threw a paint brush at his head. “Jace is a nice guy, don’t be mean. You don’t even know him so that’s exactly why lunch will be a great opportunity for us all to bond!”  
  
“I guess I’ll trust you, Fray” Simon smiled while throwing the paint brush back in Clary’s direction.  
  
The class had started and everyone had to paint something that represented their summer. Alec laughed to himself because his summer was miserable; spent indoors most days trying to avoid the outside world. Alec stared at the blank canvas trying to think of something to paint but nothing could come to mind. He quickly glanced at what Simon and Clary were painting. Simon was trying to paint him and Clary at Central Park having a picnic. Alec had to give it to him, he sucked at art but at least he had a beautiful memory to attempt to paint whereas Alec had nothing. Clary was painting the New York Skyline from a time her and her mother went bike riding along Brooklyn Bridge in the evening, watching the sun set over the city. Clary was incredible at art; it came so naturally to her.

Five minutes passed and Alec still had nothing. He heard the art room door open and slam shut and footsteps running behind him. “There you are! Where the hell have you guys been?” Clary yelled. Alec turned around to see Magnus and another boy running towards their table. Alec could feel his neck and face heat up. _Why does Magnus have this effect on me?_ Alec thought. Magnus quickly sat down and stared at Clary. “Sorry Biscuit, ran into Satan on my way here” Magnus rolled his eyes. “She is unbelievable! Raphael and I could not get away from her no matter how hard we tried. She was all; _Magnus I miss you. Magnus baby, skip class so we can talk_ ” Magnus made a gagging noise. Alec stared at Magnus in disbelief, _what the fuck is he talking about?_  
  
The boy who Alec learned was Raphael spoke up, “I swear no matter how many times I tell Camille to fuck off, she never gets the message” He sounded bored and unimpressed with the conversation.  
  
“Oh, Magnus! I’m so sorry you had to run into _her_.” Clary’s voice changed dramatically while talking about this Camille person. Her usual sweet and quiet voice changed angry and heated. “I’m glad you finally got here though, now we can forget about her and concentrate on better things! Have you met Alec? He’s new here.”  
  
Magnus slowly looked up and turned towards Alec. “Oh yes, we have met before in our previous class. Turns out Alec and I are _buddies_ for our first class assignment. Minus bumping into Camille earlier, today has been much to my liking” Magnus smirked. “So sorry Alexander that you had to hear me bitch and whine about my ex from hell. I promise the rest of the class will be much more pleasant.”  
  
Alec’s eyes were wide as he stared at Magnus. He looked at Clary and Simon and could see they were whispering and giggling to each other while looking between him and Magnus. Raphael looked at Magnus and rolled his eyes. “Y-your ex? She sounds awful. Hopefully, you find another girl who is much nicer to you” Alec mumbled uncomfortably. Magnus looked at Alec carefully, reading each and every facial expression he was making and the emotion in his voice. “Thank you, Alec. I hope I do find someone who treats me better. Man or woman.”  
Alec quickly looked up at Magnus. “Man or woman?” Magnus giggled while looking at the table, slowly making eye contact with Alec again. “You heard right, Alexander. I am bisexual, I find both men and women to be to my liking. You don’t have a problem with that do you?” Magnus smirked as he watched Alec’s blush intensify.

“No!” Alec said a little too loud. “I mean, uh- no, I have no problem with you being bisexual. T-that's cool, especially that you are so confident about it.” Alec wished he could curl up into a ball and hide from this conversation he was having in front of so many people he just met. Alec quickly looked around to see everyone else had got back to doing their artwork, not paying attention to the conversation Alec and Magnus were having. He could feel himself breathe a little easier now.  
  
“I’m glad” Magnus smiled brightly at Alec. “I have nothing to be ashamed of, I can’t help who I love. _No one_ can.” Alec slowly looked at Magnus in the eye and nodded. _He knows. He fucking knows._

The conversations throughout the table became less serious after that. Clary and Simon continued to bicker and Magnus did everything in his power to annoy Raphael for his own entertainment. Alec didn’t join in the conversations much. He just sat back and watched everyone else interact. He laughed to himself watching the group chat. _Maybe this school won’t be so bad after all?_ Alec wondered.  
  
“So Alec, what did you paint? What scandalous things did you get up to this summer?” Magnus snickered.  
  
Alec took in a deep breath and smirked, “The things I got up to are _way_ too scandalous to be told in this classroom.”  
  
“Oh Alexander, now you have me interested. Please don’t stop now. Do continue.” Magnus purred.  
  
“Oh, you know the usual, lying in bed all day, hanging out with my siblings, taking my little brother to Washington Square Park and oh, the _most_ scandalous thing I did was go on the train without swiping my card” Alec laughed.  
  
“Oh boo! I was hoping for some hot scandalous stories Alexander, you wound me! Maybe we can continue talking about what you did all day lying in your bed?” Magnus smirked.  
  
Alec coughed and went bright red. “Magnus, you have no shame! I slept and read a book.”  
  
“That’s exactly what I was thinking of, darling. Naughty, what did you have on your mind?”  
  
Alec could hardly get the words out, what was Magnus doing to him? “You’re impossible,” Alec mumbled. “I painted the day in Washington Square Park with my brother by the way.”  
  
Magnus glanced over to Alec’s canvas and smiled. “It’s beautiful, Alec. The bright colours really scream how happy that day was for you.” Alec glanced over at Magnus and gave him a shy smile. “Thanks, Magnus.”  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to message me at city-ofmalec.tumblr.com


	5. Lunch

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's lunch time and the group meets up with Izzy and Jace.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoy this chapter! I found it a little difficult to write so I apologize if it's pretty average. I'm about to start chapter 6 so I hope that one flows easier for me. I just found it hard getting everyone to meet so I am pretty unhappy with it but I really wanted to get this chapter up so as I said, enjoy! Please feel free to leave comments, it's always appreciated.

Alec wasn’t a people person. He always had trouble when it came to making conversations with new people, but with Magnus, it was like he was a completely different person. Alec and Magnus continued to chat back and forth throughout class until Alec caught Clary staring at them with a suspicious smile glued to her face. Alec stopped talking mid-sentence and stared back at Clary.  Magnus turned to see what Alec was looking at and laughed. “What’s with that face, Biscuit?” Clary smirked a little more. “Oh, I don’t know, Magnus… maybe just the fact I’ve been trying to get your attention for the last five minutes but you’ve been a bit too _distracted_.” Alec’s eyes went wide. Magnus chuckled, “Sorry dear, you know me.” Magnus winked, “now what was it you were after?” Clary slowly stood from where she was sitting and picked up her backpack. “It’s lunch time, boys! I’m starving and trying to get your attention was near impossible, Magnus! Come on now, we have to go meet up with Jace. He texted me saying he’s got a table for us all.”  
  
Alec glared at Clary and smiled. “Jace already gave you his number? He’s keen.”  
  
“Yes, he did. We have to have each other’s numbers so we can easily meet up whenever you know the whole buddy system my mum set out for you three newbies?” A slight blush washed over Clary’s face.  
  
“Wait, your mum?”  
  
“Yes, Mrs. Fairchild is my lovely mother.” Clary smiled wide. “But enough, we can all chat over lunch. If we don’t leave soon we won’t even get a chance to eat.”  
  
“Wow Biscuit, I’ve never seen you so eager to get to the cafeteria. I wonder what delicious treat you have waiting for you?” Magnus smirked and slowly faced Alec who was chuckling to himself. “Any ideas, Alexander?”  
  
“Oh, none at all.” Alec laughed as he rolled his eyes, standing to pick up his backpack. He looked around the empty classroom, “Where did Simon and Raphael go?”  
  
“They got bored waiting for Magnus to shut up so they left.”  
  
“I’ll be sure to have a word with Raphael and Stewart when we get to the cafeteria” Magnus gasped, pretending to be offended that both boys left.  
  
Slowly they made their way to the cafeteria where they saw Jace sitting with Isabelle talking. Alec smiled at the fact he was finally seeing his siblings again. It had only been a few hours but he missed Jace being a smart ass about everything and Isabelle being well… Isabelle. Jace looked towards Clary with a huge smile making her blush fiercely before he turned to look at Alec and wink. Alec looked at his brother, rolling his eyes as he took a seat next to Isabelle. Besides Alec sat Simon who has snuck up behind them as they walked into the cafeteria. Next sat Clary, Magnus, Raphael, and Jace.

“So, I’m Isabelle Lightwood, feel free to call me Izzy,” Isabelle announced to the group, pushing her long black her behind her shoulder.  
  
“Lewis. Simon Lewis” Simon winked at Isabelle, grabbing her hand across the table and shaking it awkwardly. Alec glared at Simon, making him quickly pull his hand away as Isabelle giggled. “Oh big brother, play nice!”  
  
“I’m the magnificent Magnus Bane, it’s nice to meet you Izzy. Next to Steve we have Clary, _my darling self_ , Raphael Santiago and I’m assuming you know blondie next to you… Chase was it?”  
  
Alec snorted loudly at Magnus’ comment and quickly covered his mouth, hiding the blush that quickly appeared over his face. Isabelle looked at her brother suspiciously before turning back to Magnus, “Yes, _Jace_ here if my other big brother from another mumma” Isabelle laughed as she playfully elbowed Jace in the side. “Who is Steve? I thought your name was Simon?” She glanced towards Simon, looking confused.  
  
“My name is Simon, don’t listen to Magnus. Please, don’t ever listen to a word this guy says about me.” Simon laughed, turning towards Magnus who gasped, pretending to be offended.  
  
“I don’t know Simon, Magnus here has some great fashion sense, I think he’s going to be my new bestie and I’m going to get _all_ the hot goss on you.” Isabelle smirked. “Anyway, this is a bigger group of people than I thought we would be sitting with on our first day… I was expecting to be sitting with goldilocks over here and tall, dark and brooding but I’ve got to say, this is _much_ better!”  
  
_Tall, dark and brooding? Thanks a lot, Izzy._ Alec opened his mouth to speak but was quickly interrupted by Simon. “Well, Mrs. Fairchild partnered me with Alec to show him around the school and you know, be a friend. Clary here is my best friend and also in art class with both of us-” Jace quickly glanced towards Alec and smirked. _I can hear Jace now, “make sure to put in a good word for me to Clary!”_ “- Uh, Magnus and Raphael are in our Art class and that’s the story!”  
  
Magnus looked up at Simon quickly, “Excuse me Stephen, I was the one that introduced you to Alexander because you were too nervous to say hello to him-” Alec looked up at Magnus and felt warm inside listening to the way his full name sounded coming out of Magnus’ mouth. He felt a nudge on his ribs and warm air near his ear, “ _Alexander, hm?”_ Isabelle chuckled as she raised an eyebrow watching both him and Magnus even more closely now. “Alexander and I are partners for our first English assignment. I’ve got to say, usually I hate working in pairs but I can’t _wait_ to be working close and personal” He smirked at Alec, making the boy blush severely.  
  
“Well, that is an _interesting_ story,” Isabelle smirked. “So Jace, you are awfully quiet. What’s going on in that brain of yours?”  
  
“Clearly not much,” Raphael mumbled to himself before returning to eating his lunch quietly. Magnus chuckled at the sly comment while Jace looked up and glared.  
  
“Izzy, how could you call me Goldilocks? Put a trigger warning first!” Jace shuddered.  
  
Clary looked at Jace with a questioning look. “I feel like I’m missing something… I mean clearly because we’ve just met but why is Goldilocks triggering?”  
  
Alec and Isabelle began laughing hysterically as Jace glared at them. “No! I swear to God if either of you say a word.” Isabelle began to laugh more, “You’ll do what, Jace? Empty threat much?” Isabelle took in a deep breath to stop herself from laughing before continuing, “so, when Jace was fourteen he had nightmares about Goldilocks and the Three Bears every night after we read the story to our little brother Max. He would wake up crying that he was Goldilocks and the three bears would chase him around their home because he was breaking everything in their house. Literally every night, poor Alec here would have to deal with Jace crying over a fairy-tale. To this day, Alec and I never let him live it down” Isabelle chuckled.  
  
Clary began laughing quietly before looking up at Jace, “sorry Jace, but that’s pretty funny. Pretty cute too.”  
  
Jace put on his best set of puppy dog eyes before glancing towards Clary, “I guess I can forgive you for laughing, my siblings on the other hand…” He picked up a small piece of bread of his lunch tray and threw it at Alec.  
  
“So Izzy, did Mrs. F set you up with some lucky guy?” Jace asked.  
  
Isabelle groaned. “I wish! She set me up with this girl, K-Kay…” She scrunched her eyebrows up as she continued to think of the girl’s name. “Kaelie! She’s nice, a little odd. Her style is very bohemian, she’s like a little fairy. I asked her if she wanted to sit with us today but she was desperate to sit with this guy called Meliorn, who by the way is a total looker in my class.”

“Meliorn? I don’t like the sound of him, Izzy.” Jace grumbled. Alec looked over at Jace, nodding his head. “I agree with Jace.”  
  
Isabelle looked between her brothers in shock. “You two are the worst! I haven’t even met the guy and you are already worried he’s going to break my heart.”  
  
                                                        --------------------------------------------------  
  
The bell rang throughout the school letting everyone know lunch was over and it was time to return to their final class of the day. The group slowly broke up and made their own way to class. Alec was about to get up to leave when Isabelle quickly grabbed his arm, pulling him back down to sit. Alec looked at his sister, confused. “What is it, Izzy? I have to go, I really don’t want to be late.”  
  
Isabelle continued to stare at her brother, making him feel nervous. “Izzy!”  
  
“You and Magnus seem to get along well. I’ve never seen you make a friend so quickly. He seems pretty fascinated by you.”  
  
“So? He is nice, that’s all. He is really outgoing if you didn’t notice. I’m sure he could make friends with an inanimate object.” He rolled his eyes in his sister’s direction. “Can I go now?”  
  
Isabelle stared at her brother with a knowing smile, “sure, big brother. We are talking about this more when we get home though!”  
  
“There’s nothing to talk about, Izzy! Let it go.” He quickly got up from his seat and began to walk away. “Bye Iz!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> follow me and come chat! city-ofmalec.tumblr.com


	6. Unknown Text.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The first day of school is officially over! We see a little Sizzy action. The Lightwood siblings having a bonding moment. Alec gets a text from a mysterious unknown number...

The last class felt like it dragged on for hours. It was finally 3:15 pm when the bell rang across the school, allowing students to go home. Walking down the hallway towards to front of the school, Alec found Izzy and Jace talking with Simon and Clary. They were all laughing loudly and Alec was curious to join in on what is so funny. Just as he approached the group, his phone vibrated in his pocket.   


[From: Driver David]  
_Waiting outside your school, Alec._  
  


Alec sighed, no joining in the conversation after all.   


[To: Driver David]  
_Thanks, on our way._  
  


Izzy was the first to notice Alec walking up to the group. She smiled at him sweetly, gesturing him to join the group. Alec tightened his lips together, the sides of his mouth curving upwards slightly.  
  
“Iz, Jace… our uh, ride is here waiting for us. We better get going.”  
  
Jace rolled his eyes dramatically. “No, let’s just stay back a little longer. Alec, you have to hear Simon’s story about how he named his band, it’s hilarious!”  
  
“Yeah, David can wait a while, the bell _just_ rang!” Isabelle whined.  
  
“Who is David? Do you guys call your parents by their first name or something?” Asked Simon, confused.  
  
“No, David is our driver.” Isabelle smiled. Alec hated telling people that they had a ‘driver’. He felt like it made them sound so obnoxious and stuck up. Sure, the Lightwood family was well off but it wasn’t something Alec liked to parade around in people’s faces. What Alec learnt from his old school is that when people know you have money, you get the wrong type of attention and the wrong type of people want to be your ‘friend’.

“Your driver!?” Clary gasped. “That is so cool. Why do you guys have one? Are you all secretly celebrities?”  
  
Alec couldn’t take it anymore. “God no, we are just normal people. Anyway, we really have to go. We have to pick up Max, we can’t leave him stranded at school just because you two want to stay and chat. We will be back tomorrow morning, so let’s go.”  
  
“Who is Max?” Asked Clary.  
  
“Little brother, cute but clingy. Kind of Simon-ish” Isabelle replied, happily. Alec looked between everyone in the group. Was he speaking to himself? What part of ‘let’s go’ don’t his siblings understand. Alec rolled his eyes as the conversation continued.  
  
Clary giggled. “So, he’s a little bit of a nerd, that’s what you’re saying?”  
  
“Hey! Liking Star Wars is not nerdy!” Simon gasped. “Wait… Did you say cute? Do you think I’m cute?” Simon pushed his glasses up his nose and stared at Isabelle in awe.  
  
Isabelle winked at the boy and giggled. “Maybe. Anyway, we better go before my big brother actually rolls his eyes so hard they don’t go back to normal. See you tomorrow, Clary!” Isabelle took a step towards Simon and kissed him gently on the cheek, “Simon.”  
  
Jace and Alec looked at each other in disgust. “Really Izzy!” Jace whined as he watched Isabelle slowly walk away from the group, hips swaying and she walked.  
  
Clary laughed loudly. “You still in there, Simon?” She shook him lightly. “I think your sister broke him…” Jace looked at Simon, unamused and joined in on shaking him out of his Isabelle daydream.  
  
“I’m back… I think. Y-your sister is a wonderful woman” Simon mumbled, still dazed.  
  
Alec groaned loudly. “Bye guys.” Alec grabbed Jace by his arm and pulled him away from Clary and Simon, walking quickly to catch up to Isabelle. “Iz, wait up!”

Isabelle slowed her walking down and turned around to face her brothers, with a smirk on her face, eyes lit up with mischief. “What? Simon’s kind of nerd hot. Sometimes a girl can’t resist.”  
  
Alec frowned deeply at his sister not wanting to talk about her interest for his new school acquaintance any further. “Let’s go, David has been waiting long enough. Max is probably waiting out the front of his school all alone, wondering where the hell we are.”

                                                    -------------------------------------------------

The three walked towards their car and were greeted cheerfully by David. David has always been a close friend of the family, looking out for the four siblings as far back as they can remember. As they got in the car, Jace and Isabelle continued to bicker back and forth about their day and all their new friends. Alec wanted to join in desperately but as soon as he sat down in the car, his body felt heavy and all the socialising and the panic he had felt all day crept up on him- he was exhausted. Reaching down into his bag, he grabbed out his headphones and plugged them into his phone, blasting music loudly to block out the outside world.

Stopping outside Max’s school, Alec saw Max standing out the front with a group of other students laughing. A smile crept over his face, this is exactly what Alec wanted for his little brother; to have friends, to be a kid while he still can. Max looked over at his friends and saw the Lightwoods car and smiled brightly. The three siblings laughed loudly as they saw Max run from his friends to the car, with a goofy smile permanently on his face.  “What’s going on, little man!?” Jace chuckled as he high fived the younger Lightwood as he sat down in the back seat of the car. Alec smiled at his brother and took out his headphones so he could listen to how Max’s day was.  
  
“This new school is awesome!” yelled Max, clearly over excited and over-energized from the day. “I made so many new friends, and we are all in the same class! Changing schools was the best idea our parents have ever had. Jake and Sarah want me to hang out with them this weekend and go bowling!” Max’s smile slowed faded, “I mean, I hope dad lets me go bowling this weekend… I guess I shouldn’t get my hopes up.”  
  
Isabelle looked over at Max with a sad smile, “ _Hermanito menor…_ don’t worry about dad, we will deal with him. You’re going to have the best time this weekend.” Gently, Isabelle took his hand into her own and squeezed it lightly to reassure him.  
  
“Thanks, Iz. You’re the best.” He squeezed her hand back and chuckled lightly at his sister, while Jace reached over to mess up his hair.

                                                      -------------------------------------------------

 

It was 4:30 pm when they arrived back home, saying their farewells to David for the day. Walking into the apartment, it was silent meaning neither parent was home from work yet. Both Maryse and Robert worked late, both of their jobs being very demanding. Alec knew that his parents being away so much affected Max a lot, but he and his siblings tried their best to keep Max a kid for as long as possible.  
  
Walking to his room, Alec threw his backpack on the ground and groaned as he dropped himself onto his bed. Closing his eyes, he started to drift off into a daydream which was rudely interrupted by Isabelle knocking at his door. “Go away.”  
  
Isabelle opened the door slowly, poking her head through to look at Alec. “Someone is grumpy this afternoon.” Walking into his room she closed the door behind her and jumped on to Alec’s bed beside him. “So… how did you find today?”  
  
Alec squinted at his sister suspiciously, “it was fine, I guess. Not that exciting. I wish Jace was in my classes. How was your day, you seem to be Miss popular already? Not a surprise though.” Alec chuckled as he avoided Isabelle’s hand that was swinging at his arm.  
  
“I can’t help it that I’m so charming, dear brother of mine. Anyway, my day isn’t important, yours is. You were the one who was so nervous about it this morning.”  
  
Rolling his eyes, Alec huffed. “My day isn’t important either. It was more reasonable than I thought it would be, is that what you want to hear?  
  
Isabelle smirked. “I want to hear more about those friends you’ve made. One in particular…” She laid down next to Alec and turned to face him. “C’mon, spill!”  


“Who? Simon? Iz, why him… he actually showed me places to cry today while showing me around the school.”

  
“You can tell me more about Simon another time.” Isabelle giggled. “No, I want to hear more about Magnus… you two really seem to hit it off from what I saw at lunch. He seems pretty fascinated by you.”  
  
Alec looked at his sister in distress. “Uh, w-what are you talking about? Iz, he’s just being nice. He’s like that with everyone!”  
  
“Oh, I’m sorry… like what?” Isabelle’s smirk grew bigger, knowing Alec was becoming a blushing mess over this conversation.

 

“No, nope! You can’t do that. I know what you are doing and it’s not going to work” Alec sat up suddenly in his bed.  
  
“What am I doing?! I’m not doing anything Alec, I just want to know what Magnus is apparently like with everyone.”  
  
“H-he’s just really… out there, you know? He’s… he’s just a flirty person. Come on, he was even flirting with you!” Alec whined.  
  
“You think he’s flirty, huh? Interesting.”  
  
Alec looked at Isabelle with raised eyebrows. “Shut up. Look, we just met in our English class and it turns out we are partners for our first assignment. It’s nothing, don’t try and make it into something it’s not. I made a friend, good for me. Let’s not ruin it in the first week, Iz.” Alec’s face was flushed and his breathing was becoming more uneven the more he spoke.  
  
Isabelle sat up slowly and put her arms around Alec. “Sorry _hermanito_ , I didn’t mean to upset you. I’m just happy for you. You were so nervous about today and it turned out to be a pretty great day. I’m glad you have people to hang out with in classes.”  
  
Slowly, Alec leaned back into his sister’s arms and placed his hands on top of her arms. “Love you, Izzy. I know you just want me to be happy. Look, today was good, I’ll admit it. I just hope things stay this way.”

 

“They will, Alec. Don’t worry, the past is the past and this is your new start okay, your chance to finally be who you are.”  
  
Alec smiled as Isabelle held him tighter. Just as Alec went to speak up again, his phone went off in his bag. Slowly, Alec released himself from Isabelle’s grasp and took his phone out of his bag to see a text from an unknown number.  


[From: Unknown]  
_Told you I would text you later, so here I am. ;)_  
  
Isabelle looked over Alec’s shoulder and laughed. “Oh, Alec… who is the mystery person?”  
  
Alec ignored her and replied.  
  
[To: Unknown]  
_Uh, sorry… who is this?_

 

Not expecting a reply instantly, Alec set his phone down in-between him and Isabelle. Unfortunately, luck is never on Alec’s side and his phone quickly lit up with a new message. Isabelle quickly snatched his phone off the bed, running to the other side of the room and squealed.  
  
“Iz, really! What’s with the squealing?” He whined, jumping off the bed to grab his phone from Isabelle. Isabelle smirked as she handed over his phone which made Alec nervous. Looking down he saw the message and instantly went red.  
  
[From Unknown]  
_Oh, darling, you’ve forgotten about me already? I’m hurt. It’s only the one and only, Magnus Bane at your service ;)_

 

“He really likes those wink face emoji’s, doesn’t he, Alec?” Isabelle laughed as she pushed Alec’s arm gently, teasing him.  
  
Alec couldn’t reply, he just stared at his phone, speechless. _Okay, he is definitely flirting with me. Magnus is flirting… with me._ Alec felt like his brain was in overdrive. Quickly he added Magnus as a new contact in his phone. As he added him, he was sure he could hear Isabelle mumble something like “want to add him any faster” under her breath. He turned to his sister and smiled, “Isabelle. Out.” He started to push her towards the door.  
  
“No! Alec, wait I can help!” She pleaded as she pushed back, trying to stand her ground.  
  
“Nope, out! I don’t need your help talking to my _friend_.” He opened his door and in one swift motion, pushed Isabelle out and slammed the door before she could come running back in. Putting his back to the door, he slowly slid down it and opened the message again.  
  
[To: Magnus]  
_Magnus! I’m sorry, I totally forgot you got my number this morning. I couldn’t forget you though._  
  
Send. _Oh shit._  
  
[From: Magnus]  
_Couldn’t forget me? Alexander, are you flirting with me? I mean, I’m not complaining._  
  
Alec felt like his heart was beating out of his chest. He had never been this bold before, he had no idea where it was coming from but he needed to stop. Yes, Magnus had some effect on him, but he had kept this secret with him for years now, and no beautiful- _very beautiful_ man will ruin that for him so fast.  
  
[To: Magnus]  
_Uh... no? Sorry, I’m not good at texting… or talking to people actually. I just meant, you are pretty out there, I don’t think anyone could forget meeting you._  
  
_Nice one, Alec._ He thought as he rolled his eyes.  
  
[From: Magnus]  
_My mistake, I’m sorry, Alexander… I hope I didn’t make you uncomfortable with that comment. I’m just a natural flirt, I can’t help it. Being my friend, you’ll learn that though. You want to be friends, right? Not just two people forced together for an English assignment._  
  
Alec stared at his phone in disbelief. He never thought, Magnus Bane, the confident man from school today would be asking him if he wanted to be his friend.  
  
[To: Magnus]  
_No! No, you didn’t. Like I said, I just suck at texting and talking. You’ll learn that by being my friend. Of course, we are friends, Magnus. The English assignment is like a bonus? I guess._  
  
[From: Magnus]  
_Well, I can’t wait to learn more about you, friend. ;) A bonus, indeed. Tomorrow we can talk ideas and study dates. Sound good?_  
  
Alec smiled at his phone and blushed.  
  
[To: Magnus]  
_Sounds good, Magnus. See you tomorrow._  
  
Putting his phone down, Alec rested his head on his door and released a breath he didn’t know he was holding. Maybe changing schools was the best thing that’s happened?  


                         

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading! I am SO sorry it has taken me over a month (or two I'm not even sure) to update. I've just finished my University degree so I have been a little busy with life. On top of that, I had the worst writer's block but I'm back and I'm starting to feel inspired again! Also, this is my longest chapter! I've hit over 11,000 words on this story now and I can't believe it. 
> 
> Please leave comments and kudos! I'd love to hear suggestions of where you want this story to go. I'm also interested in writing some Malec one-shots, so hit me up at my Tumblr (https://city-ofmalec.tumblr.com/) if you have suggestions for those. 
> 
> Thanks again to all that read this story and enjoy it! It means a lot. I've never written anything like this before so I'd love feedback.


	7. Planning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's Alec's second day at his new school. Another English class, another flirty Magnus Bane.

Waking up the next morning, Alec felt almost… excited? His stomach felt like it was fluttering. Pulling the covers over his face, he groaned before turning over to reach for his phone. To his surprise, there was a text message on his screen. Alec quickly sat up in his bed, heart pounding out of his chest. He opened the message, a smile now plastered on his face.   
  
[From: Magnus]  
_Good morning, Alexander. Hope you’re ready for our thrilling English Class this morning.  
  
_ He chuckled out loud. He was excited to see Magnus again, he’s never made a friend so quickly, let alone got along with someone so well in such a short amount of time.   
[To: Magnus]  
_Morning. Oh, I can’t wait.  
  
_ [From: Magnus]  
_I see you are an early riser too?  
  
_ Alec looked at the time on his phone and groaned. 5:34 AM. Alec missed the days where he could easily sleep in until late morning. Nowadays, he was wide awake and dreading the day ahead of him by 5:00 AM.  
  
[To: Magnus]  
_I didn’t even realize how early it was. Yeah, I guess I am these days. I never took you as someone that likes to be up this early?_   
  
[From: Magnus]  
_Trust me, Alexander. I do not like being awake this early. I have my very LOUD neighbours to thank for my early wake-up call. I do apologize in advance if I am on the grumpy side today.  
  
_ [To: Magnus]  
_I didn’t think so, ha. That’s okay, I guess you are forgiven in advance.  
  
_ [From: Magnus]  
_You are far too good to me, Alexander. I’ll talk to you at school, I’m going to go shower now.  
  
_ Alec stared at his phone, trying to think of a good reply but his mind was blank. Actually, his mind was on Magnus in the shower. Locking his phone, he threw it on his bed and sighed loudly. _Stop it, Alec. You can’t think of your friend this way, remember what happened last time?_ Alec’s thoughts were consuming him. Trying to avoid thinking further, he got out of bed and walked to the kitchen to see his mother standing there in her work clothes, staring out into the distance.   
  
“Morning, mum.”   
  
Shocked, Maryse turned around. “Oh, Alec. You startled me. Good morning, sweetheart. How was your day yesterday? I’m so sorry I didn’t see you last night.”  
  
He studied his mother, her eyes were tired and dull. It looked like all the life from her was slowly being drained. “Sorry.” Alec chuckled. “It was… It was okay. I’ve made some friends, I guess. The principle set each of us up with a student to show us around.”   
  
Maryse smiled at her son, “that sounds lovely. I’m glad you’ve made some friends. Not feeling as nervous today?”  
  
Alec stared at his feet, chewing on his bottom lip. “Not as nervous.”   
  
“Good. Well, I am off to work.”  
  
“Mum, it’s not even 6:00 AM yet. Are you avoiding dad?” Alec questioned. “He was pretty pissed off yesterday morning.” He mumbled.   
  
Maryse rolled her eyes. “When isn’t your father pissed off? I’m not going to lie to you Alec, your father and I aren’t on good terms right now and I’d like to avoid an argument this morning.”   
  
“What’s going on?” Alec asked wearily, not wanting to get involved in their argument.    
  
“Nothing for you to worry about, it will be okay. We just need our space right now.” She slowly walked up to Alec, pressing a kiss to his cheek. “Have a good day, give my love to your siblings.”   
  
Alec watched his mother quickly run out the door. “I will.” He replied sadly. Alec hated that his dad was making his mother feel so badly that she was working more hours than she needed to be.  Rubbing his eyes with his hands, Alec sighed and began to get ready for the day.  
  
                                                                                                   - - - - - - - - -- -- -- - -- -

“See you two at lunch!” Isabelle yelled across the hall as she skipped to her first class of the day. Alec and Jace said their goodbyes as Alec began walking to English. He hadn’t seen Magnus yet but knowing he was going to see him any second made him smile instantly. Slowly making his way through the classroom door, he saw Simon sat by the window reading. Glancing around the classroom, Magnus was nowhere to be seen. Alec put a hand through his hair, slicking it back out of his eyes as he crinkled up his nose. Suddenly a pair of hands were on his shoulders. He quickly turned around to see Magnus beaming up at him.

Magnus looked incredible. He was wearing pink eyeshadow today that complimented his deep brown eyes. Alec smiled down at him. “Looking for me?” Magnus winked as he let go of Alec’s shoulders.   
  
Alec raised an eyebrow. “Looking for you? No, I was looking for my buddy, Simon.”   
  
Magnus laughed loudly, “oh, please. I know you were searching for me, I mean… who wouldn’t be?” he smirked. “Come sit next to me today, we have to plan our assignment any way.”   
  
“O-okay.” Alec stuttered as he followed Magnus to their seats.  Walking over to their seats, he saw Simon glance up at them. He pushed his glasses back against his nose, and quickly put his book down.  
  
“Hey, guys! How are we on this lovely Tuesday morning?” Simon said cheerfully.   
  
Alec and Magnus glanced at each other and rolled their eyes. Simon was too cheerful this early in the morning, let alone too cheerful while at school. “Samuel, you are awfully happy this morning…”   
  
Simon glared at Magnus but didn’t correct him. “What’s not to be happy about? Your man, Simon Lewis has a date.”   
  
Alec’s jaw dropped. “No. Nope, this isn’t happening.”  
  
Simon stared at Alec, “what do you mean? Why not? Wait, how do you even know I’m talking about your sister?”   
  
Magnus chuckled while Alec spoke up. “Well, who else would it be?”  
  
Magnus now had tears in his eyes. “Low blow, Alexander. I love it.” He laughed as he playfully shoved Alec.   
  
Simon’s eyes widened, “I’ll have you know, I have many women who would love to go out with me!” Simon insisted.  
  
“Like, who? Clary?” Alec questioned, truly curious. He could hear Magnus, still laughing next to him, trying to cover his laughs by coughing loudly.   
  
“Clary?! What, no! S-she’s my best friend.” He stammered over his words. Sighing he looked up at Alec, “okay, it’s Isabelle. Don’t kill me?”

Alec groaned. “Woah, my sister moves fast. Just know Lewis, if you hurt my sister, she has two older brothers that will hunt you down.” Alec glared at Simon, the sides of his mouth curving upwards, “Even being my friend won’t save you, _buddy_.”   
  
Simon looked terrified. “Yes, Sir.” Magnus couldn’t hold his laughter in any longer, letting out the most unattractive noise which made everyone in the class turn around to look at him. Alec stared at Magnus in disbelief, he didn’t even care that everyone was staring at them, he wasn’t even blushing. Magnus began to wipe tears from his eyes, “Yes, Sir!” he mimicked. “Steve, you never fail to make me laugh, I knew I kept you around for a reason that wasn’t just because you were Clary’s friend.”   
  
Mrs Herondale walked into the class, making everyone stop their conversations quickly. Simon quickly turned around in his seat and Magnus was still staring at Alec. He slowly leaned over his table, his breath hot against Alec’s ear as he whispered, “Being the intimidating older brother looks hot on you.” Alec felt a shiver go down his spine. Magnus Bane will be the death of him.

                                                                                           - - - - - - - - - - - -

“I’ll see you all Thursday, I expect you to have at least watched the movie by then. Bring in notes, please!” Mrs. Herondale belted out to the class as everyone was leaving. Simon looked over at Alec, seeing him still sitting in his seat, looking uncomfortable. “Uh, Alec… we have a free period now, I was going to see my friend Maia if you wanted to join so you’re not alone?” Alec looked up at him, opening his mouth to answer when Magnus cut him off.  
  
“Thanks for the offer Sam, but Alexander and I need to plan our assignment and us sharing a free period is just perfect timing for that.”   
  
Alec’s eyes widened. _Both Magnus and I have free period now? Fuck._ He glanced at Simon, “Magnus is right, we really should plan things… Thanks for the offer though.” The side of Alec’s lips curved into a smile. With that, Simon quickly ran out the classroom to meet his friend.   
  
“So, where shall we go? Are you feeling like spending our time inside or out?” Magnus smiled.   
  
Alec suddenly felt nerves overcome his body. He hasn’t been truly alone with Magnus before and the thought of it made his stomach flutter uncomfortably. He has only known him a day but it feels like they’ve been friends for years. “Let’s go outside, some fresh air would be nice.”   
  
Alec silently cursed to himself, maybe sitting outside wasn’t a good idea after all. The sun was hitting Magnus’ face at just the right angel to make his face glow even more. His cheekbones appeared more pronounced in the natural light, small specks of glitter dusted lightly over them. The red dyed tips of his hair, looked like fire when the sun hit his head. Alec was in awe over this man. This man who was his friend… just a friend.

“We should have a study night tomorrow, to watch the movie.” Magnus casually suggested, removing Alec from his day dream.   
  
“Study night? Y-yes, that sounds good. When?”   
  
Magnus squinted his eyes at Alec and chuckled. “Tomorrow night?” Magnus began to shake his head, giggling more as he saw Alec begin to blush.   
  
“Y-y-you said that already. Ah, shit. I’m sorry, I swear I was listening. I just got…” Alec’s eyes darted up, looking at the sky and then to the ground again.  
  
“Got… what?” Magnus teased.  
  
“Distracted.” Alec huffed.   
  
Magnus was smirking now. “By what?” Magnus began to play with the grass they were sitting on, slowly pulling it out from the roots and chucking it away.   
  
“N-nothing.” Alec stuttered, he could feel his face burning now. _Why can’t Magnus just drop it?_  
  
“I’ve been called a lot of things at this school but I think ‘nothing’ hurts the most.” Magnus slowly looked up at Alec, a playful smirk on his lips, his pupils dilated.   
  
Alec raised his eyebrows at Magnus, knowing he was joking but still feeling a hint of guilt. “Way to make me feel like a jerk!” He playful pushed Magnus backwards so he was now laying down on the grass.  
  
Magnus got his foot and began to nudge Alec’s shin. “So, you admit it, huh? I am what you call nothing?”   
  
Alec quickly grabbed Magnus’ foot and Magnus sat up laughing. “I’m sorry, Alexander. You’re too easy for me to tease. Forgive me?” Magnus stared deeply into Alec’s eyes, pouting his lips slightly.   
  
“No puppy dog eyes! That’s cheating.” He watched as Magnus stopped pouting and began smiling widely instead. “Better. You are now forgiven.” Alec rolled his eyes as he chuckled, darting his eyes away from Magnus; not knowing if he could continue staring at the boy without feeling even more confused than he already feels.  “Want to come over to my place after school tomorrow?” Alec suggested suddenly.   
  
Magnus looked taken back. Alec saw something in his eyes, he wasn’t sure what but he quickly spoke up again, “you know, that study night plan that I was listening to you talk about.”   
  
Magnus coughed weakly, giving Alec a lopsided smile. “That sounds perfect, Alexander.”   


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed the chapter! I'll try and keep updating regularly. I'm not sure how I feel about this chapter but I hope it's okay. We are slowly progressing. Please leave a comment and kudos, it means a lot to me! If you have any suggestions please feel free to leave them. Also feel free to come chat with me at, city-ofmalec@tumblr.com! 
> 
> Thanks for reading. :)


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